The Gentleman’s Guide to the Perfect Handshake

Morning gents, it’s Max from the Young Gentleman’s Guide here! I am so sorry for the lack of posts on the blog all through October, school has been murder. But I am not going to let that stop me, and I should be back to my regular post schedule starting now! So jumping right back onto the train, I’m here to give you a guide to a perfect handshake. Giving a perfect handshake can make a good impression on everyone you meet, so it’s important to know how to properly give a handshake like a true gentleman. Thankfully, the Art of Manliness provided this a handy diagram that I’ll post in a little bit, and I’ll also put up a few other tips as well as different forms of handshakes in case you come across a situation where you’ll have to use them.

So the diagram seems to be pretty perfect. Look the other person in the eye, smile, don’t let your hand go limp, but also don’t try to crush the other person’s hand. With this in mind, there is one big tip I would like to add on: don’t let the handshake go to long! If any of you have seen the film Captain America: Civil War, you know that there’s a scene where Scott Lang (Ant-Man) first meets Steve Rogers (Captain America) and shakes his hand. Lang is overall very awkward in the scene and even acknowledges that he shakes Steve’s hand for too long. This is perfect advice for a good handshake. If you let it go on for too long, it can be incredibly awkward for both involved in the shake. While the length of the shake can be hard to gauge, it shouldn’t go any longer than about five (5) seconds. With this in mind, let’s go into the two (2) most common handshake variations so you know how to identify them and what they mean.

1. The Scout Handshake

Unless you’re a Boy Scout, it’s unlikely that you’ll come across this very often, but I use it quite a bit with people I know. The Scout handshake is basically the same thing as a normal handshake, just with the left hand instead of the right. The reason the Boy Scouts use the Scout handshake is because it’s a symbol of friendship, respect, and courage. The tradition of shaking with the left hand came from the Ashanti warriors who were present in Africa in the late 19th Century. According to the Ashanti chiefs, “In our land only the bravest of the brave shake hands with the left hand, because to do so we must drop our shields and our protection.”

2. The Two-Handed Handshake

You see this one a lot among politicians (I also get it quite a bit during the Sign of Peace while in church). This is pretty simple, after initiating the regular handshake, one or both participants will put their other hand on the other person’s right hand. This one is meant to show warmth, friendship, and trust. It’s meant to be a sincere handshake, to be shared between close friends, family, and colleagues.

So there it is! I’m sorry that this post wasn’t very long or in depth, the act of a proper handshake is just rather simple to learn and understand. Hopefully you found this post helpful to you and that you gents reading this are able to give great handshakes in the future. In any case, I hope you enjoyed reading today’s post. Please be sure to share the post, follow the blog, and follow The Young Gentleman’s Guide on Facebook and Instagram. And on that note, this is Max from The Young Gentleman’s Guide, and I’ll see you next time!